Lit (Wrecked Hearts Series Book 1)

by Gabrielle Gibson

  She and Jack were definitely better off as just friends.

  They turned their attention back to the television. Jessie laughed out loud at the show she had never seen. “This show is hysterical.”

  Jack nodded in agreement. “Yeah, not too much makes me laugh my ass off, but for some reason this show gets me going.”

  Jessie decided to eat another slice of pizza and scarfed it down before closing the box.

  “So what happened tonight?” Jack asked. “What did you find out?”

  Jessie gave him a rundown on her evening. She had sat with Tony and his friend, a man named Ricky, during her breaks. She had let Tony flirt with her and she had flirted back. She had played the clueless dumb blonde role to the hilt and they had therefore spoken rather openly in front of her.

  “I think they’re into more than just gambling,” Jessie said, giving Jack the details of the conversations she’d heard. Jack agreed that she might be right, although it was too soon to know anything for sure.

  At the end of the night she had peeked into all of the rooms in the back of the club except one, which was locked. There was nothing interesting to report.

  “Hopefully I’ll find out more tomorrow night.” Jessie stood up and yawned, stretching her arms up above her head. “Well, good night. I’m going to bed.”

  Her tank top rode up a little, revealing a bit of her tight, flat stomach and a cute belly button. Her breasts were straining against the thin pink fabric and he couldn’t stop himself from eyeing the outline of what was between her legs in the tiny shorts she was wearing. He stifled a groan and looked away.

  “Good night,” he said shortly, staring at the television.

  Chapter Fifteen

  JESSIE SLEPT THE NEXT DAY until almost twelve o’clock. She brushed her teeth and hair and then walked into the common area. Jack was already up and dressed, his hair still damp from a recent shower. He sat at the table with his laptop open.

  “Morning,” Jessie said as she entered the room.

  He glanced up, raking his eyes over her body, hesitating briefly on her nipples which he couldn’t help noticing were hard. He looked away quickly, turning his attention back to his computer screen.

  “Hey,” he said irritably.

  “What’s wrong?” Jessie asked, confused.

  “Nothing,” Jack replied, not looking at her.

  What was he going to say? That he was frustrated because his dick kept getting hard every time she walked into the room in a pair of shorts and a tank top? It was ridiculous. It was like being in high school again.

  He closed his laptop and stood up. “I checked up on your new ‘boss’, Tony Martinelli. He’s been charged with some serious shit. Prosecutors haven’t been able to make the charges stick, but he’s known for trafficking girls and drugs. You need to be careful with him.”

  Jessie nodded. “I’ll be careful.”

  Jack gazed at her for a minute before speaking.

  “I mean it, Jessie. I saw you with him last night. Maybe you should tone it down a little.”

  Jessie rolled her eyes. “I’ll be fine. I told you, Jack. I know how to handle guys coming on to me. You don’t have to worry.”

  He looked away from her. “Okay.” He crossed the room and opened the door to leave. “I’ll see you later. I’m going to go follow up on the lead I got yesterday. I’ll text you.”

  Jessie shrugged. “Okay, see you later.”

  He still looked uncertain. “Text or call if you need me.”

  She nodded as he left.

  Jack got a cab and gave the driver the address to the apartment building he had stopped by the day before. By searching online he’d found out that Sam Dennison’s girlfriend was Violet Davis. He had also gotten her address. She lived in apartment 204. She was twenty-three years old. She’d been arrested twice, once for possession of marijuana and once for driving under the influence.

  Her Facebook profile was set to private but he was able to see what he assumed was her picture from her public profile. A hot blonde. Sam Dennison had been sixty-two years old. It was easy to assume that this girl had hooked up with him because he had money.

  At the brick, garden-style apartments, Jack walked up the wood steps to the second floor and found number 204. He knocked and waited.

  No answer.

  He knocked again.

  The door to the apartment next door opened. An old lady peeked her head outside.

  “There’s nobody home, sweetie,” she said, her voice harshened by too many years of smoking cigarettes. “You lookin’ for Violet or Tammy?”

  “Violet,” Jack answered her.

  “Oh, Violet took off a few weeks ago. Ain’t nobody seen her. Tammy’s raging mad over it, too. Left her in the lurch on the rent.”

  “Do you know where I could find Tammy?” Jack asked, hoping the nosy neighbor would be able to tell him.

  “Sure, sure. She works down at that titty bar on 33rd Street.” She wrinkled her nose in disgust. “But you know, she says she just serves drinks there, so I suppose she could be doing something worse.”

  “Thanks,” Jack said, “I appreciate your help.”

  She closed the door as Jack turned to leave.

  The Pleasure Palace was just a couple of blocks away, so Jack walked. He was seated by a sexy as fuck chick with long black hair. He asked if Tammy was working. She nodded and he asked to be seated in her section.

  While he waited for Tammy to serve him, he enjoyed the floor show. A petite redhead was grinding all over the stage like a horny little slut. He felt his cock twitch as he watched her spread her legs and reach down to rub her own pussy through her tiny G-string.

  When Tammy came to get his drink order, he asked for a beer. As she walked away, his eyes trailed over the skirt that barely covered her ass cheeks and the crop top that showed off a pair of tits that could make it hard for a man to think straight. Add to that the long dark hair and sexy dark eyes that were his trademark preference, and Jack was already imagining how he much he was going to enjoy milking information out of this tasty little piece.

  Jack made eye contact with her as she walked passed him again. She smiled as she passed by him slowly on her way to deliver a pitcher of beer to a table of four rowdy guys. Jack’s eyes wandered over her body.

  She stopped at his table on the way back and set his beer down in front of him.

  “How you doing, sweetie?” she put her hand on his back and leaned forward to give him an excellent view of her impressive cleavage.

  “Better now,” he answered, smiling up at her.

  She sat down in the empty chair next to him. “Want some company?”

  He nodded. “You won’t get in trouble, will you?”

  She looked around for the boss.

  “No, the manager is busy in the back. I can chat for a few minutes.”

  They sat, talking and flirting for a few minutes, until Tammy reluctantly stood up.

  “I have to get back to work, sweetie.”

  “What time do you get off?”

  “Eight o’clock.”

  He offered to buy her a drink when she got off work and she eagerly agreed.

  He spent the next few hours hanging out, sipping beers and enjoying the show the dancers were putting on, chatting and flirting with Tammy when she sat with him in between waiting on other customers.

  Finally, she got off work and sat down with him to drink. Another few hours of flirting and drinking and she was inviting him to go back to her apartment with her. Exactly what he was hoping for.

  Back at her place she went into her tiny kitchen and opened the refrigerator.

  He sat down on the sofa in her small living room.

  She handed him a cold beer and then sat down on his lap, straddling him in her barely-there skirt and top. She put her arms around his neck and leaned forward to kiss him, shoving her tongue into his mouth immediately.

  “Do you live alone?” Jack asked, pulling away from her over-eager mouth.
>
  She nodded. “Yeah. I had a roommate, but she moved out. Bitch stiffed me on the rent, too.”

  She lifted her shirt over her head, distracting Jack momentarily as he automatically reached for her nipples, watching them harden as he brushed his fingers over them. She pressed herself against him, and his cock swelled against his zipper. She scooted back a bit and ran a hand over the bulge in his jeans.

  “Nice. Feels like I’m in for a big treat tonight.” She looked impressed.

  Jack didn’t reply.

  She stood up and he followed her into her bedroom.

  An hour and a half later Jack listened to Tammy’s even breathing beside him. She had finally fallen asleep after an hour of fucking, and he had been waiting the past thirty minutes to make sure she was deeply asleep.

  He slid quietly out of the bed and retrieved his clothes from the floor, slipping out of her room and closing the door softly behind him. He went into the bathroom, got dressed and washed his hands.

  He silently opened the door across the hall from Tammy’s bedroom, closing it behind him. It was pretty dark in the room, but the blinds were pulled open on the room’s one small window. Moonlight flooded in, allowing Jack to see well enough to make out the bed and other pieces of furniture. On one side of the bed was a small table. Jack reached for the lamp and turned it on. In the soft light it provided, he did a quick but thorough inventory of the room.

  A half-filled trash bag sat on the floor next to the bed. He looked inside and found it was filled with random papers and items. He picked it up. He would take it with him and look through it later.

  On the table beside the bed, Jack found a framed photograph of Violet Davis and Sam Dennison together, arms around each other. They appeared to be on a boat. Violet was in a black and white bikini. Blonde hair, blue eyes, sexy body. Jack dropped the picture into the bag.

  The drawers of the dresser against the wall revealed nothing that Jack found interesting except a few pieces of slutty lingerie and a couple of sex toys. He smirked as he closed the drawer.

  Another stack of papers was strewn messily on top of the dresser, including what appeared to be a couple of weeks’ worth of unopened mail. Jack scooped them up and added them to the bag.

  The closet was mostly empty. Just a few random articles of clothing and empty hangers. He checked the top shelf and the floor. Nothing.

  He moved quickly and quietly, methodically checking every inch of the room for anything that might provide information he could use. When he was finished, he turned the light off and quietly slipped back out of the room and out of the apartment.

  JESSIE’S SECOND NIGHT AT SALVATORE’S had gone by quickly.

  Tony had come on even stronger, bringing Jessie into his office with him on one of her breaks. He had put his arms around her waist, letting his hands slip down over her butt, which was barely covered by another super short dress.

  “So what say you and I get together later?” he’d asked, trying to nuzzle his face in her neck.

  She’d pulled gently away when she felt wet lips against her ear.

  She had been able to put him off so far, but she didn’t think she’d be able to much longer. As far as the Sam Dennison situation went, Jessie hadn’t found out anything new.

  She had been back to the hotel for almost an hour and Jack still wasn’t there. She’d received a text from him earlier just letting her know he was following up on a lead and would be late.

  It was now three o’clock in the morning and she was trying to wait up for him. She had showered and gotten in her pajamas and was now laying on the couch in front of the large television in the common area. She was fighting against falling asleep, but her eyes kept closing.

  Her eyes opened a few minutes later as she heard the door open when Jack came in. She sat up, covering her mouth as she yawned.

  “Hey,” she greeted him.

  He glanced over at her as he walked in. She noticed what looked to be a half full trash bag in his hand. He set it down on the floor by the table and stood there, looking down at her, his face steady.

  “Hey,” he replied. “You’re still up.”

  “Just barely. I’ve been falling asleep. How did it go?” Jessie looked up at him, feeling her heart skip a little.

  He sat down next to her. She drew her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

  “Good.” He motioned to the bag he’d brought in with him. “I didn’t find Violet Davis but I was able to get some stuff from her bedroom tonight. We can go through it in the morning and see if there’s anything useful there. I’m too tired to look at it now. How was your night?”

  “Fine, but not very productive.” Jessie sighed.

  She gave him a quick recap of her evening.

  He nodded, looking solemn but not commenting when she told him about Tony’s advances.

  “So how did you manage to get into Violet Davis’ bedroom?” Jessie giggled. “Did you break in?”

  He hesitated, and then, “I tracked down her roommate.”

  Jessie kept looking at him, waiting for him to go on.

  “I went to her apartment with her. When she fell asleep I searched Violet’s room.” Jack looked away, shifting his eyes to the television screen.

  It took a few seconds for Jessie to realize what he had just said.

  “Do you mean that you slept with her roommate? To get access to their apartment?” Jessie asked, her face registering surprise and disbelief, and also a bit of admiration. As shocking as she thought it was, it was brilliant.

  Jack looked back at her, not a flicker of expression on his face. He wasn’t in the mood for her judgments tonight.

  “Yeah.” He stood up. “I’m going to bed. Goodnight.”

  He went into his room, closing the door behind him and leaving Jessie shaking her head and rolling her eyes.

  She didn’t want to be judgmental. Jack was free to live his life the way he wanted to. And slut-shaming a man was just as wrong as slut-shaming a woman, right?

  A tightness crept over her chest. Jealousy was an ugly feeling that she wasn’t very familiar with. Why should her feelings be hurt just because she might be the only girl in the world that Jack didn’t want to have sex with? She should be glad that he wasn’t interested in her. She had no desire to be one of his many meaningless encounters.

  Knowing how little regard he had for the women he slept with should be turning her off. She wanted to be loved and respected, not used and treated like a sex object. And she should be glad that he hadn’t made any moves toward her. He was saving her from having to awkwardly turn him down, right?

  Then why in the world was she still thinking about him when she crawled under the covers?

  She wished she didn’t feel so attracted to him. She didn’t want a guy like Jack. She wanted a sweet guy who would be faithful. Someone she could get married to and have a family with. Someone like Scott, only with more heat. Maybe some sizzling hot sex to go along with her perfect dream. Jack could probably take care of the sizzling hot sex part. The rest… not so much.

  JACK AND JESSIE SIFTED THROUGH the contents of the trash bag the next afternoon. The most interesting take-away from the haul was a letter addressed to Violet Davis from a real estate agent.

  The letter assured her that he was confident that he could find the perfect property for her in St. Thomas, as requested. In addition, there were several glossy brochures featuring luxury homes for sale.

  “So the money went to Sam Dennison’s girlfriend?” Jessie asked, watching Jack as he concentrated on skimming over the other documents.

  “Well, yeah, some of it, I think,” Jack replied absently, not taking his eyes off the papers he was reading through.

  Jessie picked up the picture of Violet Davis with Sam Dennison on his boat and inspected it critically.

  “She’s pretty sexy,” Jessie observed. “Don’t you think?”

  Jack glanced briefly at the picture and nodded his agreement. “Fuck yeah… I’d go a
round or two with her.”

  He turned to his laptop and scanned over records from Sam Dennison’s accounts.

  “Do you think she loved him, or do you think she was with him because he was rich?” Jessie wondered.

  Jack laughed cynically. “You have to ask? Look over these withdrawals with me. Let me know if anything stands out to you.”

  “She could have loved him. You don’t know,” Jessie said, leaning closer to Jack on the sofa so she could see his computer screen.

  Her blonde hair brushed against his bare arm. He glanced at her, fighting a sudden, crazy urge to fist his hand through those pretty blonde curls. He refused to let himself think about what he would do next. He looked back at the computer.

  “Right. A twenty-three-year-old insanely hot piece of ass falls in love with a married guy in his sixties who just happens to be a multimillionaire. Unlikely. If he was a janitor or something I might believe it. Even then I’d be suspicious. A chick that looks like that with a guy that old… it’s about the money, trust me.”

  “Piece of ass? Why do you have to refer to all women that way? It’s so rude.”

  Jack glanced at her, his eyes instinctively wandering over her breasts, which were filling out the tank top she had on nicely. He forced his eyes back to her face, where her pink lips were frowning slightly and her brilliant blue eyes were focused on his computer screen.

  “What’s that?” Jessie asked, pointing to the screen.

  Jack looked to see what she was referencing.

  “New Beginnings,” Jessie read.

  “It’s a charity,” Jack said. He had looked it up.

  “Oh. Seems like a lot of money to donate to one charity, even by their standards.” There was a knock at the door. “Oh good… I’m starving.” Jessie stood up to answer it.

  Jack watched her as she walked to the door, admiring the view of her perfect little ass in those tiny shorts.

  Fuck. He wasn’t sure how much more he could take. The thought of peeling those shorts down and getting his mouth all over that ass was fucking torture.